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Loading ...Knocked Up DVD Review
Sep 18th, 2007 by Hiram
Kevin Crossman from The Frat Pack Tribute, sent us a detailed review of the Knocked Up dvd. Kevin and I have developed a great rapport and I’m privileged he wrote a review for the site. He makes a great mention of Bill and his part in providing commentary for the dvd. Be sure to get your copy when it comes out on September 25.
Knocked Up DVD Review - Kevin Crossman @ The Frat Pack Tribute
Review
Following up on stellar critical and popular acclaim comes the highly
anticipated home video release of Knocked Up. As is common for
comedies, there are several versions to choose from, but even casual
fans should bypass the one-disc Rated and Unrated editions and go
straight to the only edition worth owning, the two-disc Collector’s
Edition.
The Extras
The additional footage in the Unrated edition only amounts to a
couple extra minutes, none of which is sex related, so the “unrated”
label is a bit of a misnomer here. This differs from director Judd
Apatow’s previous film, The 40 Year-Old Virgin, which had 15 minutes
of extra footage on the Unrated DVD, much of it sexual in nature.
Apatow is front and center for most of the DVD extras, including the
commentary with costar Seth Rogen and actor Bill Hader who appears
briefly in the movie but more extensively on the DVD extras. The
commentary is entertaining but often lacks insight into the
filmmaking process. Instead, Apatow oftens jokes with Rogen and
periodically calls on Hader to do various impressions of stars
including Peter Falk, Vincent Price, and Al Pacino. Though not as
distracting as the guest star commentary for the Apatow-produced
Anchorman, Hader’s impressions take time away from discussing the
movie and left this reviewer wanting more.
More insightful, however, are Apatow’s video diaries. These bring
true insight to the creative process and it’s a kick to see Apatow
wearing t-shirts referencing his past productions Virgin and
Talladega Nights. It’s also kind of fun to see his beard grow over
time. The “Apatow process” of feeding actors lines from off-camera is
also illustrated well in the “Raw Footage” segments.
Knocked Up was a long movie by comedy standards and there are
numerous deleted, extended, and alternate scenes on the two discs.
There are dozens of entertaining scenes, including Jonah Hill’s
Brokeback Mountain rant, more of Dr. Kuni, and additional details of
Ben and Allison’s relationship. These scenes fill in little gaps in
the story and are extremely entertaining and some are funnier than
scenes including in the final cut. Even with all the additional
footage, several scenes shown in the production diaries are not
included at all. So, I guess we’ll have to wait for those when a new
DVD edition of Knocked Up is released ahead of a future Apatow or
Rogen theatrical release (can you say Pineapple Express? I knew you
could…).
Other DVD highlights include the “First Sex on Camera” and “Beard-o-
Rama” vignettes, as well as Katherine Heigl’s audition tape. These
are just a few examples of the quality extras on this collection.
Some extra features aren’t worth watching more than once. Don’t
bother getting excited about the hyped “topless” scenes; I won’t
spoil the surprise but let’s just say they’re not going to show up on
FleshOfTheStars.com.
Mockumentaries a Plenty
Did you know that Seth Rogen wasn’t the first star cast in Knocked
Up? That’s the premise behind “Finding Ben Stone,” a hilarious
mockumentary that wants us to believe that Judd Apatow can’t work
with actor in Hollywood, even himself. The featurette includes guest
stars ranging from Apatow regulars David Krumholtz, Bill Hader, and
James Franco along with others such as Orlando Bloom, Michael Cera,
and Justin Long. This is one of the most original, effective, and
entertaining DVD extras in years.
“Gummy: the Sixth Roomate” is nearly as good, effectively weaving a
tale that includes Woody Allen and an over-the-top performance by
David Krumhotlz. The mockumentary “Directing the Director” isn’t as
funny as “Finding Ben Stone” and perfectly predictable as well.
The Music
One of the more interesting aspects of the Knocked Up was the unusual
genesis of it’s score, performed by Loudon Wainwright III and written
by Wainwright and Joe Henry. The soundtrack is only barely addressed
in the commentary, though there is a nice featurette of a Wainwright
recording session on disc two. There are also three live performances
of Wainwright singing, but disc one contains the more obscure of the
three songs, “You Can’t Fail Me Now,” while the more memorable “Grey
in L.A.” and the poignant “Daughter” are relegated to disc two.
Unfortunately, there’s precious little information detailing which
songs come from Wainwright’s catalog of songs and which ones were
written especially for the movie. And there’s no information about
the soundtrack album, “Strange Weirdos,” that features full songs
that appear in Knocked Up as instrumentals. The use of Wainwright’s
songs for the DVD menus is a nice touch, though.
Overall
Leave plenty of time to savor the many enjoyable segments on the
Knocked Up DVD. Just like the movie, you’ll want to watch them over
and over again.
The Movie: *****
The Extras: ****
Review for Bill Hader Fans
Fans of Bill Hader may have a different take on the commentary.
Instead of blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo from the movie, you have a
tons of Bill cracking jokes with Apatow and Rogen. You’ve heard the
impressions before but Bill’s fans will love this stuff.
You’ll also love Bill’s part of “Finding Ben Stone” where Bill’s
impressions are put to great use. He’s also featured in a couple
deleted scenes and can be seen in the background of some of the video
diaries. It looks like he hung around the set quite a bit because he
can be seen cracking up on set in the Dr. Kuni featurette (see
photo). Considering Bill’s small contribution to the film, fans will
be pleased with his presence on the DVD.
Three Editions - Only One Choice
The following bonus features can be found on both the Unrated and
Rated DVD:
* Deleted and Extended Scenes.
* Gag Reel.
* Directing the Director: Bennett Miller (Capote) joins the set to
“help” co-direct with Judd Apatow.
* Line-O-Rama: See your favorite scenes again, but this time with
different jokes!
* Commentary: Feature commentary with writer/director/producer Judd
Apatow, executive producer/star Seth Rogen and actor Bill Hader.
* Roller Coaster Documentary: See how the cast handled their fears
filming on a rollercoaster!
The following bonus features are exclusive to the Unrated DVD:
* Even More Hilarious Deleted and Extended Scenes.
* Topless Scene-Web Design: A racier scene that gives new meaning to
baring it all!
The following bonus features are exclusive to the two-disc special
edition (this is the one to get, guys!):
* Video Diaries: A behind-the-scenes look at Judd Apatow’s journey
through the production.
* Finding Ben Stone: This feature takes you through the mock casting
process that leads to Seth Rogen. Featuring: Michael Cera
* Orlando Bloom
* James Franco
* David Krumholtz
* Justin Long
* Allen Covert
* Bill Hader
* Danny McBride
* Gerry Bednob
* Judd Apatow
* Stripper Confidential: Go behind the scenes with Seth Rogen and
Paul Rudd as they get down and dirty with strippers in Las Vegas.
* Hilarious never-before-seen deleted/extended scenes and gag reels.
* Topless Scene - Restaurant: A version of the restaurant scene that
never made it into the film for those who can’t get enough of Seth
Rogen.
* Katherine Heigl’s Audition.
* And more!
Technical Details
* Street Date: September 25, 2007
* Copyright: 2007 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved
* Price: $29.98 SRP
* Running Time: 2 Hours 13 Minutes
* Aspect Ratio: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1, Full Frame 1.33:1
* Rating: R for Sexual Content, Drug Use and Language
* Languages/Subtitles: English, Spanish, French
* Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1
You Know How I Know You’re Gay? You Find Secret DVD Features
There’s a reference in the film’s commentary to an updated version of
Seth Rogen and Paul Rudd’s “You know how I know you’re gay?” routine
from The 40 Year-Old Virgin. Unfortunately, you won’t find that
listed anywhere in the DVD features or menus.
You will, however, find a secret link to the hilarious routine on
Disc Two of the Collector’s Edition. Head on over to the Languages
menu and click on the “+” shown in red. Enjoy!
By: Kevin Crossman @ The Frat Pack Tribute
schaweeeeeeeet!!!
Regarding the photo, I think that must be the laugh Bill Hader makes when he’s excited and a little embarassed about something. He also did that when Jay Leno showed his deleted scene from “Collateral Damage.” LOL
i thought knocked up came out yesterday but i guess i have to wait 1 more week - great review kevin!
also - i promise not to write bad stuff about other sites here. i and the others will keep our criticism in the chatrooms and messageboards :P.
where can we get the daily habit vid?
To Chris’ comment: Yeah, you can tell he gets embarrassed easily, lol. I think it shows that he’s a down to earth guy who hasn’t let his success get to his head.
To JD’s comment: Knocked Up comes out September 25, be sure to order your copy through our site (amazon link on left sidebar). As for the Daily Habit video, that’s MIA. No one has Fuel TV and it came on at such an obscure part of the day that no one really got to see it.